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Rowan hasn't heard from Babs today which is a little unusual. Ordinarily he at least gets one or two text messages through out the day. Usually just pictures or things one thought the other might find interesting. Today, nothing. So he's stopping by (with tea) to make sure she's okay. The Clocktower is vaguely forboding this time of day. The Blue warrior doesn't really notice, so often has he been here. He buzzes, frowining with concern and looking up.

***

Babs has made it back to the Clocktower, and avoided Davids tail. Goodness knows how she did it, but she's kept herself together until she made it inside. All thoughts of texting anything to Rowan have been chased from her head, facing The Joker for the first since…. it happened ….. has not done her psyche any good. Right now, she's sitting at the table in her kitchen. She's had the presence of mind to pull her tablet out and is watching her systems, immersing yourself in work is good and looking rather haunted. Rowans buzzing gets an automatic response, the doors and lift are unlocked to allow the Blue Warrior entrance.

***

When the elevator opens Rowan steps out into a mostly darkened apartment. That concerns him even more. Seeing the light on near the kitchen he walks over quietly and sees… well she looks worse than he's ever seen her. He doesn't want to startle her but clearly something's happened.

"Babs?" He says quietly from near the doorway to the kitchen.

***

Babs looks up at Rowans question and tries to brighten offering the man a smile "Rowan," she blinks a little owlishly at him and frowns "Did I forget you were coming around today?" She's not offered tea or gone through any of her normal routines, instead she returns her attention to her tablet momentarily before looking back to Rowan.

***

Rowan has a plastic bag in his hand no doubt full of tea but he doesn't immediately break it out. Instead he comes over to sit down next to Babs. "No. I got a little concerned when you didn't text today, so I dropped by to make sure everything was okay." The fact that clearly everything is not okay goes unsaid for the moment. The Blue doesn't feel like he has to belabor the point.

***

Babs opens her mouth to speak several times, before she shakes her head. "No… no Rowan, I don't think it is at the moment." That tablet of hers seems to be the only thing she can really focus on for any length of time. When she does look back to Rowan she sighs "I'm sorry I didn't text you." the haunted look is still there. She obviously hid it well out on the street, but it's just not happening here.

***

Rowan watches her quietly for a moment, then gets up without a word. There's a shuffle and clink as the kettle is put on to boil and then he comes back without the bag of tea and sits closer to Babs, gently tilting the tablet down. "Babs, what happened? Has someone hurt you?"

***

Rowan touching the tablet, gives Babs pause and she powers it off placing it face down on the table. Habits die hard. Swallowing hard, Babs jaw sets and she gives another shake of her head. "Not today, they didn't hurt me today… " closing her eyes, she swallows again. "The man…. who did this to me…." and she trails off.

***

Rowan leans over and puts his hand on Babs'. "That man…" His brow furrows. "You saw him today, then, did you?" The question is quiet, his tone soothing and even. "Is there anything I can do, Babs? Even if just to listen and let you know you're not alone?"

***

Babs nods at Rowans first question. "Today, yes, first time since…." The redhead finally takes a long deep breath and finally ''sees'' Rowan. "It's stupid I know. There were two with me at the time. A cape and an angry young man. I don't think I was in any real danger. It just…." the haunted look returns slightly "It was like it just happened yesterday." Turning her hand over, she holds Rowans "I felt so helpless…"

***

Rowan laces his finger's with Babs and gives her what he hopes is a comforting squeeze. "Because of the situation?" He asks softly. "Or because it was him?" The soldier is familiar with the effects of fear. Terror, even. He knows how it turns otherwise brave people into… well, turns them inside out and leaves them feeling hollow.

***

Babs hand tightens and holds reflexively and swallows again, although she's looking marginally better. "Him, definitely him. He found me… and spoke to me." She really doesn't speak much about what happened that day, having buried most of it deep, deep away. "If the cape and that man hadn't been there…. I didn't even think to just leave, that took me ages to work out." Now she's into the self-recrimination side of things, the would have / could have / should have scenarios.

***

Rowan takes a deep breath and nods, keeping a gentle but firm grasp on Babs' hand. Just enough to let her know he's still there. "You're unhurt, he didn't try anything. I don't think you have anything to be sorry about." Clearly the experience, the first one, scarred Babs deeply. "And you have friends who won't let him get to you." Him for one.

***

Babs lets out a long, shuddering breath. "He had a detonator in his hands. The man, not the cape, he asked if I'd left my chair unattended." she shakes her head "That's not ''his'' way but… " and then she breathes again "You're right, I'm unhurt, I ended the confrontation and there were people around who helped."

***

Rowan nods once more. "And I'm very glad you weren't hurt." The Blue pauses, thinking. Babs is shaken, frightened. She's used to order in her world and this man is anything but. Perhaps she needs to be able… "Why did he talk to you? Just to scare you or…?"

***

Rubbing her arm with her free hand, like she's cold, Babs looks at Rowan. "Scare, definitely but he said things… Gotham PD, he said they're compromised." If Rowan can read expressions, he'll know that she agrees with this assessment and it chills her that she could actually agree with a madman.

***

"Your… police are…" Rowan cants his head, not quite understanding the meaning of the word 'compromised' in this context. But he can tell that it bothers her quite a great deal. "Are they not behaving as they should? You mentioned your father was involved with them once did you not?" Rowan watches Babs rub herself for a moment and then scoots his chair closer and puts his free arm around her shoulders.

***

Rowans arm around her shoulders helps and Babs leans into him. "Ah, compromised. No they" she pauses and blows out a breath "don't seem to be behaving as they should." Taking time to gather her thoughts, the silence grows "Dad was like the boss, but he isn't anymore and has little influence now. He wouldn't have let this happen. But it's been concerning me for sometime. This man… he said criminals are disappearing… and that's bad, very very bad, Rowan."

***

"If they're disappearing, where are they going then?" Partly Rowan asks questions to understand and partly he does so to help Babs follow the chain of her own logic. The criminals are vanishing. They must be vanishing to somewhere though, even if it's just a graveyard. Knowing where might provide a clue as to who.

***

"He said SRD. Special Response Division." Babs is still leaning into Rowan and forcing her mind to focus "I didn't quite get it. It's like SRD has taken over the GPD… it's concerning because" she is really struggling "metas have been going missing." Removing her glasses and placing them on the table, she pinches the bridge of her nose. "They could be related. But if not, it's a way bigger mess than I ever thought." Her breath catches "Dad will be so disappointed."

***

"Disappointed?" Rowan rubs Babs arm a little. "In you or in them?" It's hard to see an organization that you were part of, or in charge of - even worse - do poorly or even do wrong. It sounds like that's the case here. "And the SRD, they should not be taking the criminals?"

***

"Oh Dad would, could, never be disappointed in me" Babs leans a little closer as Rowan rubs her arm. "I meant in the force and what it's come to represent." she sounds a little sad "No… this is nowhere near what SRD should be doing, I fear there's something much larger underlying it." The fact that she, Gothams Information Goddess, hasn't connected the threads is chilling.

***

Systems not behaving properly is often symptomatic of a larger problem, but then Babs knows this. She deals with systems every day. Rowan responds to Babs leaning a bit closer by holding her a little tighter. If she needs the comfort, well, he's got no problem being someone she can lean on. "I'm sorry Babs. And I'm sorry the news had to come from Him. But at least you're safe and you know now."

***

Babs lifts her face to look at Rowan and shrugs "No, I know… Safe and I'm here. You're here and I really like it, Rowan. And now I have a puzzle to solve, regardless of who pointed it out to me." She's cataloguing who she needs to speak to, what records she needs and what she needs to track. The Joker may have terrified her, but he's not cowed her and… things might improve as a result.

***

Rowan smiles at Babs. "I'm here and I'm not going anywhere." His smile falters a little. "Er, unless you want me to that is." Fortunately the kettle saves him from further awkwardness. Rowan gets up and brews a couple of cups of a soothing jasmine tea, returning to slip an arm back around Babs.

***

"Thank you for coming round, Rowan" Babs murmurs as she wraps her hands around the cup he's just put in front her and leans back against him. "It would have taken much longer, if at all, to pull myself out of that. Please, stay a while longer." The redhead is feeling much better, but still not quite at her peak.

***

"Of course I will." Rowan murmurs back. "And you're welcome. It was, and is, my pleasure." For all his uncertainty navigating surfacer society, Rowan knows about supporting people he cares about, and he knows what it is to worry for them when they're going through a tough time. And he definitely cares for and worries about Babs.

***

Babs looks way better than she did when Rowan walked in, analysis and a way forward is like a tonic for her. "I should tell you… I had coffee with Arthur the other day, at his request.He wanted to know about you." If Arthur hadn't proven to be so charming, Babs would have hated that meeting.

***

"Arthur… oh, King Arthur." Took Rowan a moment but there is after all only one Arthur that he'd know. "I haven't hidden anything from him, so perhaps he simply wished to know more of me from another perspective." Either way, Rowan doesn't seem particularly bothered that the Sea King was asking questions about him. He is after all something of a curiosity. "Did Mera come with him? And how did it go?"

***

"You could say that…" Babs says softly, enjoying his arm around her. "He wanted to know how you were adjusting. He's concerned that you might create some for of diplomatic issue for him." The redhead sighs "I really didn't want to of you to him, but I thought some information to be prudent." Shaking her head, Babs continues "No, Mera didn't come, just Arthur. He can be rather stern, Rowan."

***

"He has a lot of weight on him. His nation in this world encompasses only part of the Atlantic Ocean, but his decisions are felt across the seas." Rowan knows that Arthur has a lot on his plate and the last thing he needs is a war with the surfacers. There are Atlanteans, he's aware, who would just eat up that opportunity but it would be good for no one in the end.

"May I ask what you told him? You don't have to tell me if you'd rather not."

***

Babs doesn't mind, she's already told Arthur that she would share the meeting with Rowan. "He's main concern is that you may respond …. energetically and cause a diplomatic crises for him." Babs sighs "He's asked I provide him feedback… and I will… if only to save you the inconvenience of a surveillence team. As you say, he has a lot to consider…" she snorts a little "That one man could cause him such concern…"

***

"One man who simply wants to find a home." Rowan had thought his own people in this world, but he's been unable thus far to travel there. "His Majesty may wish to consider the danger of people following me here more than the one I pose. The Nameless have been spoted a few times here and they don't seem to be going away. They're very, very bad."

***

"He said you would talk to him…" Babs thinks she understands this "Go, talk with him about the Nameless, Rowan. I've seen what they can do, you need to share that with him. If you like, I can be with you. He's just concerned for his people." She sighs "I don't want to be in the middle of this and if you say so, I'm out. Arthur will deploy his own systems … but it won't be me."

***

"He knows about them. They tried to kill us all once when I was visiting Atlantis. And I'd never mind you being present. I do trust you, you know." What Rowan does not know is whether or not Arthur understands the true potential scope of the threat they're dealing with.

***

Babs shrugs "Then I've told you everything I know." The red head looks up at the Blue Warrior, his arm around her shoulder "Thank you for just being here and the tea." Oh yes, tea… makes everything right with the world.

***

"We'll talk to him if he wants to talk. He knows where I live and I'd be happy to have you present." Rowan murmurs giving Babs a gentle squeeze. Tea does, indeed, make everything better.

"You're welcome. Honestly, it really is my pleasure Babs. I'm glad I could help a little."